Bethany Key

How to Live with Joy Even when Life Is Hard

- Discover the key to viewing life as both difficult and joyful
- Heartfelt writing on the Psalms and science from a journalist and disability advocate who has experienced significant hardship and loss


We want to live with joy. But life is hard. Culture tells us to ignore the hard and focus on the positive. But science shows that actually makes us more depressed and physically ill. In her transparent, hopeful way, Jillian Benfield shows how we can live with the joy Jesus promises--not by ignoring our dark circumstances and emotions, but by practicing a truer way of living: embracing the ＂&＂ in life.

Through sharing psalms, scientific findings, journaling prompts, and personal stories of parenting children with disabilities and medical complexities, Jillian offers encouraging, practical ways we can be real about our hard things & be grateful for the good things. She shows how we can be honest about our hardships & aware of God’s goodness. We can acknowledge our pain & keep our eyes open to the beauty still unfolding. We can be overwhelmed, grieving, stressed, angry, confused, and unsure & we can be grateful.

Because the truth is, life is hard & life is beautiful. True gratitude is found at this intersection & leads to the joyful, abundant life God promises--no matter what is going on around us.

Jillian Benfield is a former journalist and news anchor. She holds a broadcast journalism degree from the University of Georgia. Her freelance essays about living an unexpected life have appeared on sites such as TODAY, Good Morning America, Yahoo! News, and ABC News. Jillian regularly advocates for the full inclusion of people with disabilities in her writings and community, and as a part of the National Down Syndrome Congress’s National Down Syndrome Advocacy Coalition. Jillian and her husband, Andy, and their three children make their home on Florida’s Space Coast. Learn more at JillianBenfield.com.